The complex matter between Nkosana ‘Mr Please Call Me’ Makate and Vodacom, which dates back almost two decades, appears to be far from over after the Constitutional Court ruled for the case to be reheard at the Supreme Court.
Approximately 12 years ago, Nkosana Makate filed a demand letter and later sued telecom giant Vodacom for fair compensation for the ‘Please call me’ feature he came up with while working as an intern in 2001. This came after Philip Geissler, who was his supervisor at the time, promised to compensate him if the idea succeeded, but went on to launch the idea without crediting Nkosana.
After going through various courts, including the High Court, Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA), and most recently, the Constitutional Court, the matter remains unresolved. This is as the SCA’s previous decision was overturned by the ConCourt and will be reheard by a different panel of judges.
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The Constitutional Court has sent the case between Nkosana Makate and Vodacom back to the Supreme Court of Appeal, calling for a more thorough and proper ruling.
Delivering his final judgment, Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga ruled that the SCA did not fulfil its… pic.twitter.com/kuDcbqxjgw
— MDN NEWS (@MDNnewss) July 31, 2025
With this ruling by the ConCourt, it appears that the matter might still be far from over as the dispute remians active, with no clear timeline for when it could be resolved. Despite this unfavourable situation, Nkosana put up a confident front, and still believes he has a winning case, which he and his team will do everything in their power to secure.
[WATCH] Please Call Me inventor Nkosana Makate says he is still confident that he can convince the SCA to order Vodacom to pay him billions which he feels he is entitled to for his concept. This is after the Constitutional Court sent the settlement matter back to Bloemfontein.… pic.twitter.com/CT9amiTpT9
— Newzroom Afrika (@Newzroom405) July 31, 2025
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